CCW Podcast

The dramatic moment has arrived. God's book, the book of destiny, the great book of history, the book that spells out what is to happen in the end of time is to be opened. But note, the Lamb does not open the scroll at this point. He merely breaks the seals. And the events of the seals are not the end of history itself. They are the events which immediately precede the end. The seals of a book have to be broken before the book can be opened. The seals are preliminary to opening of the book.

This is exactly what Christ said. Remember the apostles had asked Christ two questions: When would the temple be destroyed, and what would be the sign of His coming and the end of the world Matthew 24:3 ? Christ answered by giving nine signs, and He called this period of history "the beginning of sorrows"(Matthew 24:5-14). After He had given the nine signs, He said "then the end shall come"(Mathew 24:14). This Sunday we will begin to look at the great tribulation which Christ called "the beginning of sorrows".

Last Sunday we looked at the rapture of the church. John pictured for us what it will be like to be snatched out of this world and taken to Heaven. That will be a thrilling experience! However, the question that is often asked by people regarding Heaven is this: "What will we do when we get there?" That is a good question! It is a question we will answer this Sunday. Join us for "I'm in Heaven. Now What?"

The heart of man is described three different ways in the New Testament. The Disciples on the Emmaus road had a burning heart (Luke 24:32) and Matthew 24:12 speaks of a cold heart. But in the Laodicean church had a third kind of heart, they were "lukewarm neither cold nor hot." A lukewarm Christian has compromised his faith. He is no longer fervent in spirit (Romans 12:11) or prayer (Colossians 4:12). He is afraid to take a stand on anything, afraid to offend anyone. The church at Laodicea was the saddest of the seven churches addressed by Christ. It was a lukewarm, indifferent church. It is interesting that in His letters to the churches Christ was angered by apostasy, but He got sick at indifference: "I will vomit you out of my mouth" (Revelation 3:16). This Sunday we will be looking at the last Church, The Laodicea Church which had closed the the door in the face of her Lord.

This Sunday we will be looking at the Church at Philadelphia which was one of the few churches that were commended by the Lord in his letters. This one is found in Revelation 3. I would have most wanted to be a part of this church on the day the mailman delivered these letters to the churches. I would not have wanted to be identified with some of the other churches who were rebuked for their compromise or lack of fervent love. This church received a letter of encouraging words from Jesus Christ, words which would have been a great motivation to continue in the faith and ministry for the Lord. The Church at Philadelphia was commended particularly for being a church of overcomers. I pray that we will clearly see how we can be like this church of brotherly love!

This Sunday we will be looking at the Church at Sardis which was called the Dead Church from Revelation 3. Christ designates Himself as the One who operates the churches through the ministers of the churches by the seven-fold ministry of the Holy Spirit. Christ's relationship to the church follows a simple principle: The Church works by the power of the Holy Spirit through the leadership in the church. Christ wanted the church at Sardis to know that He wanted to control the church by the effectual working of the Holy Spirit. Zechariah 4:6 provides the key. God says "Not by might, nor by power, but by My Spirit " says the Lord. Sardis was operating without the Spirit. There was plenty of human activity because Revelation 3:1 says "I know thy works" They were an active and organized church, but the missing ingredient was the Holy Spirit. Consequently no matter what they did, it was to no avail, they were dead. Christ reminded them that the Holy Spirit needed to be in control of the leadership. This Sunday we will heed this warning to keep us from becoming a dead church.

This Sunday, as we continue through the book of Revelation, we move to the church in Revelation 2:18-29. The letter to the Church at Thyatira is the longest of the seven letters, and it is written to the most insignificant of the seven cities. The compromise with sin, Satan, and the world that began in Pergamos becomes full scale in Thyatira. The church at Thyatira had become entrenched in the world. The letter shows the depths of sin that compromise brings: full scale idolatry and immorality. This Sunday we will be looking at how we can prevent the evils of idolatry from penetrating deeply into the church as well as into our lives as Christians.

This Sunday we will look at the third letter to the churches in Revelation 2. We began our study with the church at Ephesus, which represents the believer and church that left their first love. Then we looked at church in Smyrna, which represents the faithful church and believer who suffer persecution. Now we come to the third church, which was at Pergamos. The Church at Pergamos was the church at Satan's throne. It had married the world. It pictures the believer who compromises his testimony for Christ by becoming actively involved in everything the world is doing. Remember this world marches to the tune of the prince of the world, Satan. This worldly church serves as an example of what we want to avoid. We do not want to be the worldly church! Come and listen as we discover how to be just the opposite. We want to be a pure church, holy and well-pleasing to the Lord.

The church is sometimes called upon to suffer terrible persecution. This has always been true down through history, and it was certainly true in Smyrna. The church was under heavy attack from both the community and city officials. And there was even more persecution coming (Revelation 2:10), but the church was faithful to Christ and His mission. The church stood fast for truth against all attacks. It was a church in which nothing was wrong, that is, nothing of any major significance. Therefore, it was one of the few churches that Christ did not have to warn. Smyrna is the picture of just what a church should be. A dynamic witness for Jesus Christ through all circumstances no matter the trial or temptation. The church at Smyrna is a picture of a church that loves the Lord enough to stand up for Him even when the community attacks its witness. They were overcomers and this Sunday we will look at how CCW can be the faithful light like the church at Smyrna.